US Grand Prix 2012: F1 sticks its neck out pursuing American dream as Sebastian Vettel closes on third crown

When Formula One visited Phoenix in 1990, legend has it more people turned up
to watch a local ostrich race than the motor racing. In Texas this weekend,
as the sport embarks on yet another attempt to crack America, organisers are
hopeful that the only wild game distracting punters will be on the menu at
Wild Bubba’s Wild Game Grill, which sits within the shadow of Austin’s brand
new £250 million circuit.

Stage is set: Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel can become the youngest ever triple world champion in Austin on Sunday if he takes 15 points more than Fernando AlonsoPhoto: GETTY IMAGES

Preparations were being ramped up on Thursday for the biggest sporting weekend in the city’s history. Around 120,000 people are expected to attend Sunday’s inaugural race and the city’s bars, restaurants and hotels are bracing themselves.

No one is entirely sure, though, whether the event will prove to be a long-term success or a spectacular failure. Mark Gallagher, formerly head of marketing for Jordan Grand Prix, described the project as a “colossal roll of the dice” bearing in mind the sport’s repeated failures to establish a foothold in the home of the world’s richest economy.

“Apart from those two decades at Watkins Glen, 1961 to 1980, Formula One has really struggled in the States,” Gallagher said. “Certainly, it hasn’t done well during the Bernie Ecclestone era. And let’s be honest, it’s not about to become a major sport in America overnight, whatever happens in Austin. Anyone who says that is living in cloud cuckoo land.

“The best Formula One can hope for is to achieve a presence; so that once or twice a year it can spike interest in the American media and show up on the radar. It’s the same as the NFL when it comes to London. It generates interest but it’s never going to take over from the Premier League. There are huge cultural differences.

“So it is a colossal roll of the dice but this race does at least have a chance. It has a 10-year deal. There is longevity and ambition on the part of the owners. Indianapolis started well in 2000.

The first race was packed to the rafters but audiences dwindled and terminal damage was done by the 2005 fiasco when only six cars raced following a dispute over tyres.

“But I was struck by the way the COTA guys went out and secured MotoGP, WEC, V8 supercars. They have realised you can’t have a one-hit wonder and a ghost town for the rest of the year. If COTA’s backers’ pockets are deep enough, it could work. I still think the States needs a home-grown driver to get behind though.”

Formula One’s penultimate race of the season – at which Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel could be crowned the youngest triple champion in the sport’s history if he can beat Ferrari's Fernando Alonso by 15 points – will be vying for the attention of petrolheads with the denouement to NASCAR’s championship at Homestead in Florida.

Eddie Gossage, the president of Texas Motor Speedway near Dallas, said there was “no crossover” between the series, adding that Formula One posed no threat in the long-term. “It’s like soccer in this country. It has never succeeded and I don’t think it will ever succeed because it is not our game.

" I think the race will be quite successful this year, the question is can it sustain that success?”